Effect of biochar-amended urea on nitrogen economy of soil for improving the growth and yield of wheat (Triticum Aestivum L.) under field condition

A field experiment was conducted to evaluate effect of biochar-amended urea on nitrogen economy of soil for improving the growth and yield of wheat under field condition. Experiment plan was comprised of twelve treatments with four replications including treatments without application of urea and biochar (control) and urea only. Biochar was applied at 1–10% of the weight of urea fertilizer applied each treatment. Results showed that application of biochar at 10% with recommended dose of urea significantly improved plant height, spike length, number of tillers, number of spikelet per spike, 1000 grain weight, grain yields, biomass yield, harvesting index, nitrogen (N) concentration and uptake in grain and straw, and agronomic efficiency of nitrogen by 6.0%, 11.1%, 32.0%, 55.3%, 5.4%, 38.0%, 19.0%, 9.0%, 19.0%, 26.0%, 65.0%, 50.0%, and 63.0%, respectively, as compared to treatment comprised of recommended rate of nitrogen without biochar.     

Metal micronutrients relationships in crop,soil, and common weeds of two maize (Zea mays L.) fields

Deficiencies of metal micronutrients are common in some calcareous soils. Samples of aerial parts of maize and five common weeds and also soil beneath these plants were collected and analyzed to investigate the status and relationships of metal micronutrients in soil, crop, and common weeds of maize field trials at two sites. Results showed that Fe concentration in five studied weeds was higher than that of maize; the highest Fe concentration was found in Convolvolus arvensis and Echinochloa crus-galli (first site) and in Convolvolus arvensis tissues (second site). At both sites, the highest Mn concentration was observed in aboveground parts of Echinochloa crus-galli. The concentration of Mn (both sites) and Fe and Cu (second site) were remarkably higher in Echinochloa crus-galli tissues in comparison with maize. Also the concentrations of Fe (both sites) and Cu (second site) were considerably higher in Convolvolus arvensis tissues in comparison with maize. Available Fe was the highest in the soil beneath Convolvolus arvensis and Portulaca oleracea (first site) and beneath Convolvolus arvensis and Cenopodium album (second site). The high value of available Fe in the soil beneath Convolvolus arvensis may explain why Fe concentration was the highest in aerial parts of this weed species.     

Effects of Foliar Spray of K on Mint,Radish, Parsley and Coriander Plants in Aquaponic System

An aquaponic system was designed to investigate the effects of foliar applications of potassium (K) on mint, radish, parsley, and coriander growth and physiological characteristics. Plants were sprayed with 100 mL pot^?1 of 0.5 g L^?1 potassium sulfate (K₂SO₄) twice a week. Fresh and dry masses of shoot in all species were higher in K-treated plants. Potassium concentration increased with K spray in the shoots of all species. K-sprayed parsley accumulated a greater amount of Fe and chlorophyll in shoots. Values of SPAD index in all species decreased significantly in untreated plants. The highest Quantum Photosynthetic Yield (F_v/F_m) values were observed in coriander plants treated with K, which was attributed to higher SPAD value in these plants. Potassium application had a negative effect on sodium (Na) and positive effect on magnesium (Mg), manganese (Mn), and zinc (Zn) concentrations in plants. These results indicated that foliar spray of K can effectively alleviate nutrient deficiencies in leafy and root vegetables grown in aquaponics.     

Iron and/or acid foliar spray versus soil application of Fe-EDDHA for prevention of iron deficiency in Valencia orange grown on a calcareous soil

A two-year experiment was conducted in an iron(Fe)-deficient orchard with calcareous soil to find out an alternate method for soil application of Fe ethylenediamine-N,N'-bis(2-hydroxyphenylacetic acid) (Fe-EDDHA) in orange trees. Foliar sprays of Fe-EDDHA (5 g l^?1, pH = 7.8), sulfuric acid (pH = 3), citric acid (5 g l^?1, pH = 2.4), Fe (II) sulfate solutions (250, 500, and 750 mg Fe l^?1) with their initial pH (6.5, 6.35, and 6.12) and reduced ones to pH of 3 were compared with soil applied (75 g tree^?1) Fe-EDDHA and a control test. Although optimum chlorophyll content, leaf Fe concentration, fruit quantitative and qualitative attributes were resulted from soil application of Fe-EDDHA, repeated sprays of Fe-EDDHA or acidified Fe solutions created suitable results. Acidification of Fe solutions made them more effective in alleviation of leaf Fe concentration and Fe chlorosis, probably due to remobilization of inactive Fe within the plant and prevention of Fe oxidation and precipitation in foliar solutions.     

Potassium fixation of some calcareous soils after short term extraction with different solutions

This investigation was done to determine the release of potassium (K) from five calcareous soils of southern Iran using 0.025 M CaCl₂, HCl and citric acid during six successive extractions and to study the K fixation capacity of the soils after K release experiment. Mineralogical study indicated that Vertisols and Mollisols were dominated with smectites; while other soils had illite, chlorite, palygorskite and smectite. Results indicated that citric acid extracted more K than CaCl₂ and HCl (137 vs. 111 and 113 mg kg^?1, respectively). The analysis of calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg) and K concentrations in the solutions suggests that the exchange of K with soluble Ca and Mg (originated from dissolution of carbonates by acidic solutions) is the main mechanism of K release, but citrate is able to dissolve K-bearing minerals and release K in slightly calcareous soils. Soils with more illite released more K. Potassium fixation capacity of soils increased after extractions of soils with different extractants from 324 to 471 mg kg^?1, with no significant difference. It is suggested to apply more K fertilizers in K-depleted calcareous soils and use of different solutions for extracting K from soil minerals may be a temporary and short term solution.     

Optimizing fertilizers doses and their effects on photosynthesis and biomass yield of Hibiscus cannabinus cultivated on BRIS soil

In tropical climate, huge amount of fertilizer need to be used for the cultivation of kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L.) in Beach Ridges Interspersed with Swales (BRIS) soil, however this approach is not cost effective and environmental friendly. Therefore, the optimizing of fertilizer rate for BRIS soils and selection of suitable soil amendments are crucial to get a higher yield. In this study, the effects of different combinations of urea, chicken manure and biochar on soil properties, growth performance and physiological characteristics of kenaf cultivated on the BRIS soil were investigated. Eight treatments were conducted namely: control (T1), biochar (T2), chicken manure (T3), urea (T4), chicken manure + urea (T5), biochar + chicken manure (T6), urea + biochar (T7) and biochar + chicken manure + urea (T8). The biomass and physiological characteristics of kenaf were recorded every month, while the soil was analyzed following a standard laboratory procedure. The application of organic and inorganic fertilizer (urea) significantly increased the nutrient content of the soil compared to the T1, whereas T3 showed the highest pH, cation exchange capacity, and exchangeable bases (Na, Mg, Ca). However, the mixing of biochar with organic and inorganic fertilizers showed the highest plant height, diameter of stem and number of leaves as well as dry biomass compared to other treatments. Furthermore, the application of nitrogen fertilizer significantly increased the photosynthesis rate and stomatal conductivity. The results suggest that the mixing of biochar with organic and inorganic fertilizers represents an effective approach for the cultivation of kenaf in tropical climate.     

Comparison of genetic variation among accessions of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Aegilops tauschii</Emphasis> using AFLP and SSR markers

Genetic diversity of 54 accessions of Aegilops tauschii from five countries was assessed using sequence-tagged microsatellites (or simple sequence repeats, SSRs) and amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLPs). In the case of AFLP analysis, a total of 256 amplification products obtained, 234 of them were polymorphic across all the 54 accessions. A total of 224 fragments were obtained from the 24 SSR primers and 219 of fragments were polymorphic across all the genotypes screened. Based on both AFLP and SSR markers, the highest percentage of polymorphisms were obtained in Iranian and accessions of unknown origin. The highest polymorphic information content (PIC) value was observed for SSRs (0.82) while the highest marker index (MI) value was for AFLPs (8.5) reflecting the hyper-variability of the first and the distinctive nature of the second system. Principal co-ordinate analysis (PCO) revealed congruent patterns of genetic relationships for both data sets, but did not group accessions strictly according to their geographical origins. Poor correlation was found between AFLP and SSR marker loci. This low association may be due to low number of AFLP and SSR markers. These results show that molecular markers can help to organize the genetic variability and expose useful diversity for breeding purposes.     

Quantitative Mapping and Assessment of Environmentally Sensitive Areas to Desertification in Central Iran

Desertification is one of the main environmental and also social and economic problems facing Iran. Seventeen out of 31 Iranian provinces, which are home to approximately 70% of the total population, are affected by desertification. This study aimed to use geographic information system (GIS) and fuzzy logic for mapping environmentally sensitive areas to desertification based on Mediterranean Desertification and Land Use approach in Isfahan province, central Iran. Six desertification indicators including climate, soil, vegetation, soil erosion, groundwater, and management and policy quality were used to determine various types of environmentally sensitive areas to desertification. Seventeen desertification indices affecting the quality of each indicator were spatially mapped and assigned a value between 0 and 1 using a fuzzy logic option of ArcSDM3 software in GIS environment. Results showed that a 21·7% of the study area was classified as critical, 70% as fragile and 5·5% as potential, and 2·9% of the area was not affected by desertification. In the town of Borkhar, 64·2% of the area was classified as critical, followed by the towns of Isfahan and Nayin with 40·2% and 31·8%, respectively. Results at provincial scale indicated that the climate indicator and humidity index with a weighting mean of 0·71 and 0·77 were the most affective factors in the desertification of the study area. The developed model in this study can be used for mapping desertification status in other 16 provinces that contain desert areas. These assessments provide a GIS‐based desertification database that Iran as a member of the United Nation Convention to Combat Desertification can use to report the condition of desertification at national scale. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Density separation of soil organic matter across three land uses in calcareous soils of Iran

ABSTRACT

The aim of this study was to examine the usefulness of physical and chemical fractionation in quantifying soil organic matter (SOM) in different stabilized fraction pools. Soil samples from three land use types in Lorestan province, Southwest Iran were examined to account for the amount of organic carbon and nitrogen in different SOM fractions. Size/density separation and chemical oxidation methods were applied to separate the SOM fractions including particulate organic matter (POM), Si + C (silt and clay), DOC (dissolved organic C), rSOM (oxidation-resistant organic carbon and nitrogen) and S + SA (sand and stable aggregates). The values obtained for TOC, TN, and HWC were highest in forest lands followed by the range and agricultural lands. Among the SOM fractions, S + SA showed the highest values (5.75, 5.77 and 20.6 g kg^?1 for agriculture, range and forest lands respectively) followed by POM, Si + C, rSOM, and DOC. The concentrations of C and N in the labile fractions obtained the higher values than in the stabilized fractions. Forest lands had the highest amounts of organic C and N among all fractions whereas agricultural lands showed highest values for inorganic C content of soils in different fractions.